Beautiful Stranger
by ravenrules23
Summary: When the famous actress Valentine Browning enrolls at Degrassi, she’s afraid that she will be constantly recognized like at the previous high schools. However, when she meets Craig, they click instantly. The only problem is, Craig is still with Manny and
1. Part One

**Beautiful Stranger**

**an fanfiction by Ravenrules23**

**Summary: **When the famous actress Valentine Browning enrolls at Degrassi, she's afraid that she will be constantly recognized like at the previous high schools. However, when she meets Craig, they click instantly. The only problem is, Craig is still with Manny and he has no idea that Valentine's a celebrity. Things are about to get interesting…

**Author's Note: **Here I go again with yet another fanfiction! This time, not featuring JT, Liberty, or Emma! Although I love those characters (I'm not a fan of season 5 Emma, however), I want to write about someone else. Maybe I'll have better luck with Craig! Plus, I thought a lot about this one and hopefully you guys will like it!

**Part One**

Valentine took a glance at her new school. _Seems pretty normal, kinda nice looking. Hopefully better than the last school. _She thought back to her experience at the last school she attended and shivered. _No one would leave me alone! I know I'm famous and all, but they seemed to completely forget that I'm a person too. _She parked her car, grabbed her backpack, and walked up to the main entrance. So far, nobody recognized her. This might just work.

"Hey, what's up?"

She turned around and saw a average height, brown haired, brown eyed, and seemingly cute guy in front of her. He wore a simple t-shirt, jeans, and carried a worn-out messenger bag. _Oooh, and they got eye candy too. Awesome._

"Nothing really, just getting ready to go in and be helplessly lost. And yourself?" she replied, smiling to reveal her ultra white, naturally straight teeth.

"Your first day, I see. I would have graduated last year, if I didn't fall short of credits. Kinda stinks, but I wasn't ready to go to college just yet, so in a way it all worked out." he explained. She found it cute how he was so comfortable talking to her. After all, they had just met.

"Yeah, I'm a senior too. I just transferred from Beverly Hills High." she said. She hoped that he didn't realize that she was Valentine Browning, actress. It would completely ruin the normal conversation they were having, and he would be too star struck to even talk to her. It happened all the time. Once people realized who she was, they went away.

"So what brought you here to Toronto? Degrassi isn't all that exciting. Well, minus the shooting that happened here 2 years ago, and some of your typical high school drama. Catfights, people making out, that kinda stuff." he said. She laughed a little at his description. He had a sense of humor, and he was not up on his pop culture either. _I like this guy._

"My mom got a job up here, so we moved." she explained. It was true; her mother did get a job in Toronto and they had to move. It couldn't have been better timing for Valentine, since her nasty publicized split with Landon Hughes, the famous basketball star. But she figured this guy didn't need to know about that.

"Cool. Well, I might as well show you around. Wouldn't want you to be confused for a freshman now, would we?" he said. She smiled and followed him into the school. Once he had shown her all her classes, he stopped. "I forgot to ask you for your name, by the way. I'm Craig."

"I'm Valentine. Weird name, I know, but I was born on Valentine's Day so my mom figured Valentine would be a good name." she said, extending her hand. He shook it and smiled.

"Well, it was very nice meeting you, Valentine. Why don't I give you my phone number, just in case you get lost or find yourself needing someone to talk to?" he said. She happily agreed and they exchanged phone numbers. "See ya around."

"Bye!" she said. Once Craig was out of sight, she did a dorky happy dance and went to her homeroom. _I have the feeling that this will actually work out…_

Craig poked at his lunch, consisting of a turkey sandwich, mushy fries, a cup of red Jello, and a milk carton. None of it looked edible. But, after being at Degrassi for so long, he was used to it.

Manny set her tray next to Craig's and kissed his cheek. "Hey Craig. So, what's up?"

Craig looked down at his lunch. "Should I even attempt eating this?"

"Probably not a good idea, but when you're hungry like me, it will have to do." Manny replied, eating a fry. "Eww."

"My point exactly." Craig said. He noticed Valentine walk in and motioned for her to come sit with them.

Manny looked at Craig oddly. "Who is that?"

"A nice girl I met today. She's new, doesn't really know anyone. You don't mind?" Craig explained.

"No, why not?" she replied. She couldn't help but notice how jaw-dropping pretty this girl was. Her caramel colored hair seemed to glow against her slightly-tanned skin and her gorgeous green eyes. She oddly resembled Valentine Browning, a actress that was on one of Manny's favorite shows. She figured Craig knew this, so she didn't say anything.

"Hey Valentine. I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Manny. Manny, this is Valentine." Craig introduced. Valentine extended her hand and Manny shook it, eying her up and down.

"Nice to meet you. I hope I'm not interrupting anything or something like that." Valentine said.

"Just the horrible food we're about to consume. But that's about it." Craig said. Valentine laughed as Manny forced down a bite of her hot dog.

"Well, now I know to bring lunch tomorrow. So, how have your days been so far?" Valentine asked.

"Ok, not special or out of the ordinary or anything. How about you?" Manny responded. She had learned in the last year to not be mean to anyone new and to not automatically assume that Craig liked every girl he met.

"Nah, nothing special. Just trying to get used to everything." Valentine responded. "Well, sorry to cut this short but I have to go. I told Mr. Armstrong I was going to the bathroom and he probably is wondering what's taking me so long. See ya guys!"

Manny's eyes followed Valentine as she walked out of the cafeteria. _She is definitely Valentine Browning. I mean, who else would have a name like that? I wonder what she's doing at Degrassi…and what she wants with Craig…_

"Um, Manny, everything ok?" Craig asked, noticing Manny staring at Valentine.

"Yup. I'm good." Manny said, quickly snapping out of her thoughts. Craig kissed her lightly on her cheek, which comforted Manny. When they got into arguments, afterwards Craig always kissed her on the cheek to let her know that he's sorry about whatever they were arguing about.

_You have nothing to worry about, Manny. Sure, this girl is very pretty and nice, but you know that you love Craig and that you trust him, _Manny re-assured herself.

Later on, Valentine was sitting in her car, just thinking about her first day at Degrassi. _That Manny girl seems like she doesn't like me. I could just tell by the way she was looking at me._ _Obviously she knows who I am…_

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, and she quickly took it out and checked to see who it was.

_Hey Valentine, wanna hang out at the mall around 7? –Craig_

Valentine smiled. _Sure, why not? I'll meet you there. _she replied.

_Hmm…I wonder what Manny will think of this. She seems like the jealous type. Well, she'll have to get over herself, because absolutely nothing is going to happen between Craig and I. I barely know him. _she thought. After turning off her cell phone, she drove home and sat down to watch a re-run of Project Runway.

"Hey honey, how was the first day?" asked Valentine's mom, as she walked in.

"Ok, I made a few friends." Valentine responded. "I'm actually going to hang out with one of them at the mall around 7. Is that ok?"

"Sounds great. You always were good at making friends." she commented, patting Valentine on the head and then going into the kitchen.

Craig checked his watch as he waited for Valentine to come. _I really hope Manny doesn't get mad about this. God, sometimes I wish that Manny were more trusting. But, I know that I've cheated on her before…something I'm not proud of, but a reason for Manny to not completely trust me. _

Finally, Valentine got out of her car and walked up to Craig. "Sorry I'm late. I didn't realize how low on gas I was."

"It's ok." Craig replied. "So, do you want to see a movie, or eat?"

"Eating sounds good right about now." Valentine said. They both went to the food court, paid for their meals, and sat down.

"Wow, I haven't had a decent-tasting hot dog in ages." Craig commented, squeezing more ketchup into his mouth.

"Such a shock to someone that consumes the processed crap they call 'hot dogs' at Degrassi." Valentine replied, with a laugh from Craig.

"Someone who likes sarcasm as much as I do. This is going to be a great year." said Craig, smiling. Valentine smiled along with him. _It is literally going to take everything inside of me to not have a crush on this guy. I haven't met anyone so nice, not even at my old schools. If only he didn't have a girlfriend…_

Manny and Emma casually walked, shopping bags in tow, in the mall. Manny had just vented to Emma about Valentine and how much she annoyed her, and shopping seemed to be the only cure to her problem.

"Seriously, this girl is like perfect. She's pretty, funny, nice, and a celebrity. What more could anyone want?" Manny said.

"Don't worry about Craig, Manny. I know you're thinking that they're probably hooking up right now. Craig did cheat on you, but I think he learned his lesson and won't stoop that low again." Emma advised, although she knew at the bottom of her heart that he probably would.

"Yeah, and who am I to trust that? It's Craig, Em! You never know what he will do, or how trustworthy he is. Yes, I absolutely adore him, but I'll never be able to trust him 100 around other girls. Especially really pretty girls." Manny protested.

As they went around the corner, they noticed Valentine and Craig sitting at a table, laughing. _Oh great… _Manny thought. _She certainly doesn't waste any time._

**End of Part One**

**In Part Two:**

Will the relationship between Craig and Manny be strong enough to weather the seemingly rough Valentine storm? Or will Craig fall for Valentine and break up with Manny? Will I be able to actually complete this fanfiction successfully in a short amount of time? We will see!


	2. Part Two

**Beautiful Stranger**

**Part Two**

A/N To that anonymous reviewer, thanks for such a positive review, it really made my day (note-SARCASM). And to the other review, seriously, thanks!

Valentine couldn't believe who she was seeing. _Manny and some blonde chick…perfect. They probably think me and Craig hooked up. Well, I'll prove to her that I'm no typical 17 year old. Yes…maybe I have a slight crush on Craig, but I definitely wouldn't act upon it._

"Hey Manny." Valentine said. Manny just looked at her.

"Manny, Emma, nice to see you. What brings you to the mall?" asked Craig awkwardly.

"Just wanted to hang out, shop a little. How about you guys?" Manny replied, eying Valentine.

"We wanted to hang out too, kinda get to know each other." Valentine said. Manny gave Craig a stale look. _Yeah, get to know each other. Riight._

"Who's your friend, Manny?" Valentine asked.

"Oh, this is Emma. Emma, Valentine." Manny replied. Emma, with a little push from Manny, shook Valentine's hand.

"Nice to meet you." she said with no enthusiasm whatsoever.

Craig just leant back in his chair and sighed. _This is bad…what the heck am I going to do now? Manny probably thinks I'm into Valentine, which I'm not…although I will admit I have a slight crush on her, but it's nothing major. Emma now probably doesn't like me either. Valentine feels awkward and probably will feel weird around me now. Geez, why does this have to happen?_

"Ok, well Steve Madden is calling our names. Call me later, Craig." Manny concluded, giving Valentine another harsh cold look before leaving. Valentine sighed.

"Why do girls have to be so…evil?" Valentine questioned. _What a total jerk. I can't believe he's dating her. I heard that a clip of her showing her boobs off was sent to the entire school. Ugh…_

After finishing their meals, Craig and Valentine walked around the mall for a little bit, making sure to avoid Manny and Emma. Afterwards, they said goodbye and drove home. Manny and Emma, however, were still at the mall.

"I can't believe her. They are totally hooking up." Manny said. They were now in Sephora, checking out makeup.

"Manny, you know, he actually could not be cheating on you, again. They could just be friends." Emma commented.

"Yeah, could, but not actually. I know that girl's game. They totally like each other." Manny continued, putting on pink lipstick and then taking it off.

"Manny…if you're that concerned, just break up with him. Or learn to trust him a little more, either one." Emma advised.

"He cheated on me once, Em, and he will probably cheat again. Ugh, that dirtbag. Those dirtbags." Manny once again continued.

"I'm not going to say anything else. So, how about this coral color?" Emma said.

Valentine, with her bag lunch, walked into the cafeteria and sat down. An seemingly angry Manny sat down in front of her.

"Don't you even think of making a move on Craig, got it?" she snapped.

"Wasn't going to, Manny. Seriously, chill." Valentine replied. "Don't you trust your man?"

"Not around you. You're too pretty to resist. Plus, Craig has cheated on me before, he actually cheated on 2 girls, me and this chick named Ashley." Manny replied. Valentine's eyes widened.

"Wait, he cheated on you?" Valentine said.

"Yes, he did. So trusting him isn't exactly easy. Please, don't tempt him anymore than you already have. Dogs will be dogs." Manny commented.

"Well, I'm not going to stop being friends with him just because you told me to. I wasn't under the Manny dictatorship rule the last time I checked." Valentine replied. Manny rolled her eyes.

"Whatever." she said, walking off. Valentine looked down at her lunch, bummed out a little. _Why does this always have to happen? I find the coolest guy, and he ends up having a girlfriend that is totally possessive and kinda bitchy about it too, and he has cheated on girls before. WHY?_

Craig drove home after school and threw his messenger bag onto the living room couch. Joey, with a glass of water in hand, was sitting on the couch.

"Hey, next time you may want to check the couch before throwing stuff on it." Joey said, moving the bag onto the ground.

"Sorry. Just in a dilemma, as always." Craig said, and sat down next to Joey.

"Let me guess, girl problems?" Joey asked.

"What other kind of problems would I have? It's like I can never be happy." Craig replied.

"You and Manny having problems?" Joey asked.

"She thinks I'm cheating on her with this girl named Valentine. She's new to Degrassi and I just met her." Craig explained.

"Well, you know Craig, you did kind of give her a reason to think that. But, with a girl you just met, I don't get why you would give up your girlfriend of about a year now for her." Joey said.

"I didn't Joey, seriously! Yeah, Valentine's pretty, nice, and she's very sarcastic, but I'm dating Manny, not her." Craig replied.

"Seems to me like you have a little crush on this Valentine, eh?" Joey commented. Craig felt his cheeks get a little red, something that never happened. _It's that obvious? No wonder Manny thinks I'm cheating on her. Sometimes I seriously hate really awesome girls...especially when you have a girlfriend._

"I guess so. But I really don't know what to do. I mean, I really do like Manny and everything…but then there's Valentine, this awesome girl." Craig said.

"You should take some time to get to know Valentine, and then make your decision. Maybe she's not what she seems." Joey advised.

"Yeah, I should." Craig agreed. _If only Manny didn't catch us trying to get to know each other all the time, and assume we're hooking up. Maybe it would be easier if she wasn't always there._

As soon as Valentine walked into school the next day, she found Craig and walked up to him, seemingly disturbed about something. _He's a cheater…how can such a awesome guy be a cheater? I've got to see if Manny wasn't just lying. It can't possibly be true._

"Hey Craig." Valentine said.

Craig smiled when he saw her. "What's up?"

"Actually, I have a question. Manny, at lunch yesterday, told me that you had cheated on her and another girl. Is that true? I just wanted to make sure that Manny wasn't lying or anything." Valentine explained.

"She told you that?" Craig said. _Way to air my dirty laundry out for everyone to see, Manny. What a great girlfriend you are. _"It's not something I want people to know, not something I'm proud of at all. I was immature, and it was a huge mistake. I'm sorry if you don't want to be friends anymore because of this."

Valentine leant against the wall. _Wow, so its true. I really don't know what to think. I've heard that saying "Once a cheater, always a cheater" but when I try to apply that to Craig, I can't. He's just so nice and easygoing…I can't believe it. _"Of course I want to be your friend Craig. I just can't believe that you did that."

"Me either. I was insanely stupid and really just a jerk. It makes me re-think my relationship with Manny, because I know how hard it is for her to trust me. I always wonder if we're really meant to be together." Craig replied, looking at Valentine as he finished. They looked at each other for a minute or so, until Manny came up.

"Craig, we need to talk." Manny said, giving a death glare at Valentine.

Craig looked down. "Well, apparently I'm in trouble. See you later, Valentine, if I'm allowed to."

Valentine laughed. "Let's hope it isn't too bad."

Manny rolled her eyes. _He doesn't want to hear this, but then again, I don't care. I'm going to do this whether he likes it or not. _

"So, what's up, girlfriend?" Craig said nonchalantly, slouching against the wall casually.

"What's up? Craig, you obviously like her, and she obviously likes you too." Manny stated.

"You want to break up. I can tell. You know, I was thinking that as well. Things haven't been so great lately and obviously we just don't click like we used to. It's probably best if we just break up now." Craig said.

"I'm glad you agree. You and Valentine, you have something, and it's only hurting you and her if you don't do something about it." Manny said.

Craig couldn't believe how encouraging Manny was being. _This isn't Manny, not at all. She probably has some kind of scheme up her sleeve._

"Well, thanks for the advice Manny, and I will see you later. Bye friend." Craig said, walking back over to Valentine. Manny sighed. _Ugh, of course they end up being together. Not if I can't help it._

**In Part Three…**

**-How will Manny interfere with Craig and Valentine?**

**-Will Craig and Valentine even go out? Or will they continue to get to know each other?**

**-How will the next part prove to "go there?"**

**We will see…until then, au revoir!**


End file.
